Metallurgical method.



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AUGlIl'STE J. ROSSI, OF NIAGARA FALLS, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR' TU TEE 'lfl'liiNIUllI- ALLOY MANUFACTURING: COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF METALLURGICAL- METHOD.

1 ,104,31 '7. Specification of Letters Patent.

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern: v

Be it known that I, AUGUs'rE J Rossr, a citizen of the United States, residing at Niagara Falls, in the county of Niagara and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Metal-' lurgical Methods, of which the following'is a specification.

My present invention relates to incorporation into iron, or its alloys, of titanium, or its compounds, and the objects of myinvention comprise such incorporation in amounts sufficient for certain uses by manipulationsmore simple and economical, including lower temperatures, than heretofore.

Prior to my invention, in production of to such high temperatures, say 2500 C. at

least, or much higher, as can, with industrial practicability, bedeveloped only in electric furnaces as per, among my Letters Patent, No. 609,466, dated August 23, 1898 for alloy of iron and process of producing it also No. 1,039,672, dated September 24, 1912, or, as can be developed, by aluminum reduction of titanic oxid as per Reissue No. 12,674, dated March 17 1908. Such relatively high temperatures still appear indispensable in production of alloys containing such relatively high percentages of titanium, or its desired compounds, including its carbid, as say'10% or more, but I have discovered that in cases in which percentages as low as say 5 to 1 per cent. or less suffice for certain urposes, as for example in purification, or 1n recarburizing, of steel or other metals, asper among my Patents,

Nos. 1,056,125, dated March 18,1913, or No.

1,003,805, dated September 19, 1911, such lower alloys, or compounds, are producible, and sometimes more advantageously, under conditions and by procedures requiring no' If so-called titaniferous iron, or ilmenite,-

ores, as for example those from the neighborhood of Baie St. Paul, Canada, containing often, as high as 36.88% to 40% of Application-filed April lo, 1914; Serial N 0. 831,052.

Patentedduly 21, 1914-.

titanic acid and about 50% oxids of iron, be-smelted, as per usual approved blast furlnace practice, 71. e; by aidof' carbon and 'fluxes, as for instance, per my Patent 486,941, dated November 29, 1892, the pig will contain no, O1" 110t to exceed an insignificant fraction o f'one' per cent, of, titanic material in any form, such constituents of the ore proving, under such conditions, so refractory as to pass off in the slag. But, if, as per my present invention, manganese, in

sufiicient quantity, be, by'any means, made age of that metal also than if titanic oxid were absent. Extended research and consideration have hitherto failedto disclose" an altogether satisfactory explanation for these iunexpected phenomena, but repeated tests iestablish that presence of enough molt-en manganese, particularly'if in nascent state, ilnsuresreduction of titanic oxid at much lower than hitherto deemed requisite tem- I Zperatures, and that the occurrence'ofTiO reduction serves to increase reduction of oxid manganese'if present.

In considering the merits of my present invention it is also to be noted that iron ores eentaining enough titanic constituents to be l1stiguishable as titaniferous, say not less than 3%, are almostinvziriablj found in nature no-t to containabove 1% of oxid of manganese, in'- fact generally only" a few hundredths, or tenths, of one percent. On theother hand, thereverse is, sofar as I know, true ofso-called manganiferous ores, the which, containing more than 1% of oxid of manganese, appear, 1n nature, to be devoidof titanic 0nd, or containing not to exceed insignificantly small fractions of 1% thereof. I therefore'infer that the results of my inventionhave, prior thereto,

been unattainedfand are substantially unattainable by reduction, or smelting, of unadmixed, natural, ores. Y

-' In explanation and support of'theabove, I refer'to some of my operations as follows,

viz:I selected a titanife'rous' iron ore of the following composition, viz':-iron oxid 50.14, TiO 36.88, SiO 2.92, Mg() 3.27, CaO 0.50, A1 0 4.80, MnO 0.21. Four lots of this ore were smelted at different times in a blast furnace according to usual, approved, blast furnace practice, and resulting pigs obtained, which, b analysis, were indicated to have contained of titanic substances, in whatever form, no more than the following, viz :Lot No. 1 0.03 titanium; lot No. 2, 0.05; lot No. 3, 0.025; lot No. 4, 0.000. I thereafter mixed with the same ore oxid of manganese (M110 in the ratio of 100 parts of ore to 30 of said oxid, andsmelting the mixture, as before, obtained a pig containing, by analyses, titanium 1.94, and manga: nese 2.56, carbon 4.16. From another similar test with the same ore in which I admixedtherewith 40 parts of MnO I obtained a pig analyzing titanium 2.05 and over, and manganese 3.02. I have conducted other similar operations in which the additions of manganese oxid were less in proportion to titanic oxid, and obtained pig metals analyzing from 0.79 to 0.9 of titanium existing as such,'or as compounds thereof in such pigs.

My invention is practised by' incorporating into any usual approved, open hearth, or blast furnace, or other, charge comprising titaniferous iron ore, fluxes and carbon, oxid of manganese, as, for example, preferably, by admixture with the charge of manganiferous iron ore, or ore containing sufficient oxid of manganese, the essential being to secure presence of suflicient molten manganese, preferably nascent, during the operation.

The charge is, of course, during the operation, heated, but, preferably, not to exceed the temperatures suflicient to reduce oxids of iron or manganese as in usual blast, or open hearth, furnace practice, say 1510 C. to not to exceed 17 00 0., but my results are attainable at temperatures even lower.

The proportions of manganese or its compounds employed will be readily determined according to the requirements ofv each case by those'skilled in the art. They. will depend, to an extent, on the proportion of titanic oxid present, and the per cent. of metallic titanium, or its compounds, desired, or feasible to incorporate, in the resulting product.

My researches have, up to the present, indicated that in no operation of my method can any important, or practically useful,

amount of titanium, or its carbid, be expected in the final product, unless the titaniferous iron ore employed contain not less than 3% of titanic oxid, and there be in the charge, oxid of manganese in quantity not less. than equal to 10% of the titanic oxid present, or, in lieu of said oxid of mangabeen unable, as yet, to incorporate, in the final product, more than say 5% of titanium,

or its compounds, notwithstanding presence ef sufficient carbon and much more than suficient oxid of titanium and manganese. Itgoes without saying that in all cases carbon should be supplied as usual in quantity sufficient to reduce the iron oxids of the charge, and enough to reduce as much of the oxids of titanium and manganese as is feasible under the temperatures employed as aforesaid, subject to the above limitations.

After the reactions have proceeded as far as possible, or desired, the resulting molten metal is withdrawn and cast as usual, and will be found to contain, in addition to iron, manganese, and carbon, from say less than one to five per cent. of titanium, or say its carbid, or both, depending, in part, on the proportions of titanic oxid, carbon and manganese in the charge; and on the temperatures.

The product is useful for many purposes, including purification, or recarburization, of metals, or their alloys. Its production, as aforesaid, is, as will be appreciated, more economical than by previous methods of incorporatin into ferro metals titanium or its compoun s derived from titanic oxid, and my method is also particularly valuable because utilizable in, and as part of, usual blast furnace or open hearth operations with titaniferous iron ores.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Let ters Patent is the following 1. The metallurgical method which comprises bringing together carbon, titaniferous iron ore containing not less than 3% content of titanic oxid, and oxid of manganese in quantity not less than 10% of said titanic oxid, and melting them together at tempera.

ture below 1700 C.

2. The metallurgical method which comprises bringing together carbon, tit-aniferous iron ore containing not less than 3% con aniferous iron ore,'and er at temperature below prises bringing together carbon, titanic oxid,

and manganiferous iron ore, and melting them together at temperature below 1700 C.

6. The metallurgical method which comprises bringing together carbon, titaniferous iron ore containing not less than 3% content of titanic oxid, and oxid of manganese in quantity not less than 10% of said titanic oxid, and melting them together.

7. The metallurgical method which comprises bringing together carbon, titaniferous ironore containing not less than 3% content of titan c oxid, and manganiferous iron ore, and melting them together.

8(The metallurgicalmethod which com prises bringing together carbon, titanic oxid, and oxid of manganese in quantity not less than 10% ofsaid titanic oxid, and melting them together.

9. The metallurgical method which com- I prises bringing together carbon, titaniferous iron ore, and manganiferous iron ore, and melting them together.

"10. The metallurgical method which comprises bringing together carbon,- titanic oxid, and m'anganiferous iron ore, and melting them-together.

11. In the incorporation of a" tit-anicsubstance into a ferro-metal, the step which consists in supplying molten manganese to a charge containing such metal, carbon, and titanic. oxid.. v

12. In the incorporation of a titanic sub stance into a ferro-metal, the step which I consists in supplying to a charge containing such metal, carbon, and titanic oxid, molten manganese derived byreduction of a quantity of its oxid not less than 10% of said titanic oxid.

stance into a ferro-metal, the step which consists in supplying molten manganese to a charge maintained throughout the operation at temperatures not to exceed 17,00 C. and containing such ferro-metal, carbon, and titanic oxid.

14. In the incorporation. of a titanic substance into .aferro-metal, the step which consists in supplying to a charge maintained throughout the operation at temperatures not to exceed 1700 .;C.' and containing such metal, carbon, and titanic oxid, molten manganese derived by reduction of a quantity of its oxid not oxidl v 15. As a new article of manufacture, the ternary alloy of iron, titanium, and manganese. 1

16. As a new article of manufacture, an alloy, or compound, containing preponderance of iron, titanium not to exceed manganese, and carbon.

17 a new article ;of manufacture, an alloy, or compound, containing iron, titanium, manganese, and carbon.

18. As a new article of manufacture, an alloy, or compound, containing carbon, iron, titanium, and manganese not less than one per cent.

I AUGUSTE J. ROSSI. Witnesses: I

PHILIP G. REE,

ALFRED R. CONANT.

13. In the incorporation of a titanic subless than of said titanic 

